Customer Reviews

Fullmetal Alchemist, Volume 8: The Altar of Stone (Episodes 29-32)

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4 star:		(1)
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In vol.8 the Elric brothers stumble into a strange young boy on Yock Island while trying to leave. The child has no memory of who he is, how he got on the island, and why he's there. What's even crazier is that the child can perform alchemy without a transmutation circle. He can also transmute his body and merge with things around him like stone and wood. This kid scares everybody because not only is his body weird he's full of fear but you can tell he's hideing something evil behind it. Izumi takes the kid in for some odd reason and tells Ed and Al to stay away from him. The amoral Lt. Colonel Archer tries to capture the strange child but Izumi is willing to put her life on the line for the kid but why.

Things just get worse for everyone as more of the truth comes out about Izumi's past and her physical health. The mystery of the Homunculus unravels and explaining how they're born and this truth shocks some but not all. Ed also discovers something about the arm and leg that were taken from him four years ago and man is he ticked off when he finds the secret. This DVD contains episodes 29-32 (29-The untainted child, 30-Assult on south headquarters, 31-Sin, and 32-Dante of the deep forest). Every episode is great and proves that Full Metal Alchemist is worthy to be called a classic. None of these episodes get boring or dull it pulls you in even more. This volume will not dissappoint because there is not just one there are many surprises.

DVD Features: Textless Songs, Production Art, Image Gallery, Character Profiles, Trailers.

This is my favorite show of all time. I own all the dvds as well as box sets, wall calendar and all manga (yes, I am obsessed). If you have seen the show up to this point you know just how good it is. In this volume the plot just keeps getting better. We learn of Izumi-Sensei's mysterious past, the truth about that strange child on Yock Island, and, best of all, the truth about how a homunculus is created. This volume will not dissapoint, and I know I am definatly going to buy it. And be ready for the rest of this show, the action does not slow down, it is amazing untill the end!!

Yes, mark your calanders. This is taking a turn for the best. If you didn't buy the last DVD, or at least watched it, you were missing alot. However, the ass kicking you love is back. New characters introduced:
-Greed-the ultimate shield-a new sin, or rather an old one...
-Dante-teacher's teacher-the wise lady of the forest, who lives in a mansion!!
-Archer-the sadistic lt.col.-he has a plan, and will stop at nothing to complete it...
-Wrath-many secrets behind this sin-buy the DVD, I can't reveal it now!

Also, Lyra and Tucker wil be reappearing!! That's good for the fans of those characters....

Also, back on that Alchemist's Gate topic from my last review. If you ever wondered why the pocketwatch and tansmutation circle were not thee when Ed transmuted in the very first DVD, buy this DVD....

As Ed and Al are preparing to leave Yock Island, they can't get over the feeling that someone was watching them during their stay there. They were right, as a young child comes walking out of the forest and his alchemical power might just be the most powerful that the brothers have ever seen. The boy is able to take on the attributes of any matter he touches without a transmutation circle. Naturally enough, the brothers are suspicious of him because the encounter seems a tad too convenient. But their master Izumi takes him in and treats him as a normal child. When the military finds out about his existence, they'd like to get their hands on the strange boy as well. Meanwhile Mustang and his fellow officers continue their search for Scar and track him down to a remote outlying slum, only to find themselves in danger of starting another civil war, with the help of the Homunculi. Humans are so easy to manipulate.

This eighth volume of Fullmetal Alchemist brings the show back to its original theme, that is, of trying to bring loved ones back from the dead, and the evil it brings into existence. Or really not evil, but amorality. The humans in the show bend alchemy and Nature to do their bidding but they don't even know what they're manipulating! Izumi's backstory as presented in this volume is really involved and I almost wish there was another title devoted just to her character. Hopefully, she will be fleshed out even more in future volumes. A small problem that I had with this installment is that the creators are beginning to juggle too many storylines. Yes, all of these characters seem to be connected somehow, but it feels as though the plot is becoming diluted. Whereas before Ed and Al were the main focus, now you have all these Homunculi running around, Mustang and Scar in a prelude to rebellion, Winry, and now this kid, and then Izumi. You can't focus on anyone now. The plot is beginning to control the characters rather than vice versa. Don't get me wrong, it's still an excellent show, but it's starting to become cluttered.

This part of the series marks a turning point in the show. The show from here is packed with intense storyline! We find out who the stange kid on Yock Island really is, and more about Izumi's past. These episodes are a must have!

The show surpassed my expections upon viewing. It is more interesting, at least to me, than most anime. Great, intricate story line.

Fullmetal Alchemist has achieved so much in such a short time. Many anime critics consider this the best anime of the last few years, and some even go as far as to say the best anime ever. Even more people are finding their way into anime because of the TV airing of this show. And me, well I began buying this series only a month ago (as of the time of this writing), and now I'm broke at eight volumes in. And never have I regretted spending so much cash on something so trivial.

This volume ups the anti on the series itself, as it finally shows everything that Ed had to go through in the moments after he and his brother Alphonse attempted to resurrect their mother. This volume also shows a darker side to alchemy, a kind of other dimension that Ed and someone else (I say "someone else" so as not to spoil) had to experience when the laws of alchemy were broken. While all of this is happening, a new enemy is slowly coming forth, yet another Humonculi that has powers that the other Humonculi want.

This volume has a lot to offer, and if you've been collecting FMA, then I wouldn't stop at volume seven. Volume eight is loaded with plenty of revelations, great action sequences, and a lot of drama (not melodrama).